


A Dark Night in Bahrain

by ZDcookie_996



Category: Formula 1 RPF
Genre: Established Relationship, George drives for Mercedes, M/M, Nicky Comforts George, Nicky's thoughts on the race, Sakhir 2020, fiance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-03
Updated: 2021-02-03
Packaged: 2021-03-15 07:07:54
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,561
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29185275
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ZDcookie_996/pseuds/ZDcookie_996
Summary: Nicky comforts George after the Sakhir Grand Prix.
Relationships: Nicholas Latifi/George Russell
Comments: 4
Kudos: 23





	A Dark Night in Bahrain

**Author's Note:**

> Hey everyone! Here is a story featuring Nicky/George whereby Nicky comforts George after he misses out on winning at the race in Sakhir 2020. I have also mentioned both George and Nicky's thoughts on the race before the couple meet. For the purpose of the story, they are out to friends, family and the team but no one else in the paddock knows which is why I have mentioned the theme of the bracelet. It probably shouldn't be possible for George to go between Mercedes and Williams as I have written but as George belongs to Williams, it technically counts. I should also make the point that I have no idea what George actually wears to bed but its hot in Bahrain so that's why he's only wearing shorts. Hope you all enjoy and please stay safe!

George kept his head down as he led the race. He had led plenty of races throughout his racing career but this was the first time he had ever led a race in a Formula 1 car. What made it even better was the fact that he was driving a Mercedes. He listened to Bono who was instructing him on what to do. There was no time to panic when the safety car went in and there was no time to determine what was going on with Valtteri behind him. 

Everything was going well and George tried not to be too disappointed for Nicky when he was told about the virtual safety car on lap 55 because the Canadian had stopped by the side of the track. It was a shame to see his fiancé out of the race but he had to keep on going. 

Nicky was taken to the media pen straight after leaving the car. It wasn’t ideal to finish a race early but then he had to be thankful that he had completed more laps that Max and Charles put together as they had crashed on the first lap. A towel was wrapped around his neck as it was hot even though it was night time. He had to answer questions without actually knowing what was wrong with the car. Williams didn’t really have any reliability problems but the cars were going to stop at some point and Nicky was sure that the team would get to the bottom of it. When he finished, he went back to the Williams motorhome and quickly took a cold shower before he sat down to watch the rest of the race. He chuckled as he thought about how he and George couldn’t joke about the brunette overtaking him in the Mercedes as Nicky was out. George had teased that he would give him a wave. 

Disaster first struck on lap 63 when Jack Aitken lost his front wing and triggered a safety car due to the debris. Nicky couldn’t help but think how ironic it was that it was technically George’s car which had brought out the safety car. People had to remember that George was driving Lewis’ car. 

The Mercedes team decided to double stack the drivers and both stops were a bit slow, Valtteri’s breaks were on fire and overheating. George was then forced to go into the pits again having just come out because there was an issue with the tyres. 

Nicky couldn’t understand what was going on. According to George’s radio, there was a mixed set of tyres on his car. It meant that George had dropped down to fifth.

The Canadian tried not to worry. There was still plenty of time for George to get through the four cars ahead. He could still win. He ignored Fergus who was nervously watching the race. He shook his head when George had been sent back into the pits. 

Nicky cheered when George managed to overtake Valtteri for P4. It was somewhat crazy that he was cheering for a Mercedes but it was his fiancé. He was always going to support him. He knew that the team would be cheering for George as well because at the end of the day, he still belonged to Williams. 

Everything was going well for George. He soon found himself in second place and the gap between himself and Sergio was getting smaller. He believed that he could still win the race. The issue with the pitstop was out of his mind as he continued to race. Everything was fine now, he just had to keep going. 

That was easier said than done.

Lap 79 would forever haunt George in his dreams.

Bono came onto the radio to tell him that he had a slow puncture. It meant another pitstop. It meant that any chance of even getting on the podium was now up in smoke. 

He couldn’t believe it. Nicky couldn’t believe it. 

The Canadian was sitting with his head in his hands as he had to listen to George on the radio, frustration evident in his voice. 

It was clear that there was no time for George to get from P15 into a podium position with seven or eight laps to go. There was no chance. 

Nicky fiddled around with the bracelet on his wrist as he was forced to watch George fight through the field to achieve even a few points. 

The couple wore matching bracelets because they didn’t want to come out to the world yet so George didn’t wear his engagement ring in public. The team and their families as well as friends knew but the media didn’t and they didn’t want to get caught by George wearing his ring. He kept it in his pocket most of the time and tied it around his laces when racing. 

In the end, George finished the race in ninth. He finally had his first points and it was unfortunate that the points would count for Mercedes and not Williams. Nicky was so proud of George. The Brit could’ve won his first race, maybe could’ve had a podium if it had not been for the slow puncture. Nicky couldn’t even begin to imagine what would be going on in George’s head. He couldn’t go and see him because he would be stuck in debrief and George would be in the media pen. There was also the fact that George was with Mercedes for this weekend so technically they were in different bubbles. 

Nicky ran a hand over his face. Fergus patted him on the shoulder and Nicky just shook his head. There were no words. He went down to the garage for a moment to speak to his engineers and bumped into Sophie. The blonde sighed and wrapped her arms around Nicky.

“We were cheering him on, we’re so proud of him.” She murmured.

Nicky smiled behind his mask and the two parted before Sophie was off to go retrieve Jack so he could go to the media pen. The Canadian was forced to take his mind away from George and concentrate on his engineers as he spoke to them in the garage to arrange a time for debrief. 

He had to wait for Jack to finish in the media pen so he called his parents. They were both disappointed that Nicky couldn’t finish the race but they were so proud of George.

“He should’ve won, he deserved to win.” Michael said.

Nicky sighed.

“Twice, I can’t believe it. He could’ve had a podium maybe even the win if he hadn’t got the puncture.” He said, sadly.

Michael sighed.

“It will come. He has shown he is an amazing driver.”

Nicky fell silent. There were so many emotions going through his head and he hadn’t even raced the whole 87 laps. 

“Tell him that we’re very proud of him.” Said Marilena.

Nicky smiled.

“I will.” He promised.

He had no idea if he was going to see George anytime soon. They weren’t sharing rooms in the hotel, instead sharing rooms with their coaches to hide from everyone else. 

He soon ended the call and by then, Jack was back and they were able to conduct the post race debrief.

Nicky had been right in thinking that there were lots of different emotions running through George’s head. The Brit had cried when he crossed the finish line. He cried as he hugged Bono and Toto back at the motorhome. He cried when he called his parents. It took a lot for George to go out into the media pen. Everyone wanted to speak to him and he didn’t know what to say. He was tired and he didn’t know what to do. He wanted to see Nicky but he would have to wait.

George was exhausted by the time debrief had finished. It had taken everything out of him to get changed out of his race suit to then sit down and go over the race again. It was late at night and George just wanted to get out of the motorhome.

When he finished with the debrief and all his media obligations, he left the Mercedes motorhome and headed to Williams. He knew that he shouldn’t be going there but he wanted to see Nicky. He was tired and all he wanted was his fiancé. 

He stepped into the Williams motorhome, sighing as everyone was packing up. Sophie and Adam were busy chatting and Adam looked up, surprised to see the brunette there and it caught Sophie’s attention. 

“George!”

The Brit swallowed nervously as he took his mask off and put it in his pocket, it was too much and he had to get rid of it. 

“I know I’m not meant to be here but I had to come.” He stuttered.

Sophie couldn’t argue as she saw tears gather in George’s eyes.

“Nicky’s still here.” She said, softly.

She didn’t need to say another word as she made eye contact with the very man that George was looking for. George frowned when Sophie looked away from him and he turned around to see Nicky standing staring at him, dumping his bag down in a nearby seat. 

“Hey.” Said Nicky, gently.

George couldn’t speak due to the lump in his throat as his fiancé walked towards him. Nicky ran a hand over George’s arm when he was close to him.

“What are you doing here?” Asked Nicky.

“I wanted to see you.” Whispered George.

He couldn’t hold it in anymore and the exhaustion and the disappointment from the race hit him at once that tears fell from his eyes and he began to sob. Nicky quickly wrapped his arms around George and let the brunette sob into his shoulder. 

Sophie had tears in her eyes as she tried to ignore the private scene in front of her but it was difficult when George was crying so much. 

Nicky ran a hand through George’s hair as he tried to hold back his own tears. To hear George sobbing was heartbreaking and Nicky just wanted to make his fiancé happy. 

When George’s crying eventually died down, Nicky pulled away so that he was gazing into George’s eyes. He ignored the younger man’s sniffling as he held onto his shoulders.

“I’m so proud of you, you were amazing out there. You’re time will come, you’ll get that win.” 

George closed his eyes to try and stop the tears and he sniffed when Nicky stroked his cheek.

“I love you.” Murmured Nicky.

George opened his eyes and smiled softly.

“I love you too.” He said, softly.

He moved so he was resting his head on Nicky’s shoulder and sighed as he felt exhausted but let Nicky wrap his arms around him again.

“Nicky, take him to the hotel.” Said Sophie, gently.

The Canadian turned to look at the blonde and nodded. He pulled away and kissed George’s forehead.

“I’m going to let Fergus know that I’m going, I’ll be back in a minute.” He promised.

He left George waiting as he ran upstairs to let Fergus know that he was leaving. He also asked Fergus if he could share his room with Aleix as he wanted George to stay with him. Once his coach had agreed with the new sleeping plan, Nicky headed back downstairs and picked up his bag before he walked over to George.

“Ready to go?”

George nodded and the couple put their masks on. 

“Could you let the team know that we’re heading back to the hotel?” Nicky asked Sophie and Adam. 

Adam nodded whilst Sophie smiled.

“Of course.” Said Sophie.

“Take care of each other.” Said Adam.

Nicky smiled at George before they exchanged goodbyes and left the motorhome. George reluctantly headed into the Mercedes motorhome to retrieve his bag. He took a moment to thank everyone and he said goodbye before he left with Aleix. Nicky and Aleix exchanged elbow bumps before they headed out of the paddock and towards the car park. They stopped when they reached Nicky’s car. 

“Aleix, is it alright if Fergus sleeps in your room tonight? I want George to stay with me.” Asked Nicky.

Aleix looked from George to Nicky and nodded.

“Yes, that’s fine.” He insisted.

“I’ll message the room number to Fergus. George, do you want to drive with me or Aleix?”

George looked up at his coach before he turned back to his fiancé.

“You.” He answered, softly.

Nicky smiled and opened up the passenger door to let George sit inside. The Brit handed over the car keys to Aleix who patted him on the shoulder and took them. He then went and sat in Nicky’s car. The Canadian sighed once he closed the door.

“Look after him, Nicky.” Said Aleix.

He got a firm nod in response and watched as Aleix headed towards his own car before he jumped into the driver’s seat. 

George sighed as he rested his head against the headrest. Nicky gazed at him for a moment before he started the car.

The couple walked hand in hand to Nicky’s room once they reached the hotel. George sighed and ran a hand through his hair after he threw his cap off. 

“I need to go and grab some things from my room.” He said, tiredly.

Nicky nodded as he took his mask off. 

“No problem.”

George reluctantly left and headed towards his room. Nicky messaged Fergus the room number that George had been staying in as he waited for his fiancé to return. The knock at the door a few minutes later alerted Nicky to George’s return. He opened the door and let George step through. George sighed and took his mask off before he headed over to Nicky to wrap his arms around him.

“How are you?” Asked Nicky, curiously.

“Tired and sore.” Admitted George.

“Come on, I’ll give you a massage.”

It wasn’t long before George was lying on his stomach in a pair of black shorts that he usually wore to bed as Nicky indulged him in a massage. He was close to falling asleep and smiled sleepily when Nicky chuckled at him.

“You are not falling asleep on top of the covers.” Warned Nicky.

George shook his head slowly against the pillow. 

When Nicky was finished, George didn’t want to move. The Canadian changed out of his Williams clothes into a pair of gym shorts and carefully maneuvered George so they could lie in bed together. Nicky lay on his back and let George cuddle into his side. George rested his head on Nicky’s chest and he sighed.

“Go to sleep, babe.” Murmured Nicky.

He ran a hand through George’s hair who nearly purred as he wrapped an arm around Nicky’s waist.

“Thank you.” Whispered George.

“What for?” Questioned Nicky.

“Being here for me, for supporting me.” Replied George, sleepily.

Nicky tightened his grip. 

“I’ll always support you.” He whispered.

George sighed again and he fell asleep listening to Nicky’s soothing heartbeat. His fiancé gently kissed his head.

“I love you.”

Nicky closed his eyes. He was determined to forget about the race. He was so proud of George and he would focus on that going forward. 

It wasn’t long before he fell asleep and the race was taken from his thoughts and instead filled with George and their future together.


End file.
